Clamp



May 1 45 T. VAN TUYL ET AL CLAMP Original Filed Oct. 2, 1939 PatentedMay 8, 1945 2,375,501M 'oLA P; I

, Thomas Van Tuyl and Hale, f Chicago, Ill:

Original application October 2, 1939,.-Serial No.

, 297,534; Divided and this'application- Julyr, 1943; seriarn risaoss Y.

8 Claims (01. 249-243) The presentinvention is adivision of our prior"applicatioii entitled Vehicle] brake signals, filed October 2,1939;Serial Number 297,534,- which" has matured into Patent No 2 326,808,granted Au u t 3 31-9 3 Our invention relates to means*for-'clamping abracket ior'qther "thing-to a post, bar or} thelike and; ha "'ijorits'object to produce a simple and novel construction'that. will make itpossible easily and securely to fasten "a member to anysuppcrtiaboutlwhich. ag li'ght metal strap may be partly in section,illustrating one of our improved devices applied to a bar-like piecewhich may be a fragment of a vehicle brake pedal; Fig. 2 is a view,partly in front elevation and partly in section, of the assembly shownin Fig. 1, but on a larger scale; Fig. 3 is asection on line 3'3 of Fig.1, on the same scale as Fig. 2, illustrating the manner of applying theclamp; and Fig. 4 is Figur l is a view, partly in side elevation and lassembly appearing in Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawing, l represents a bar,

postor the like, and! is a bracket which is to be fastened to the same.The bracket has a large hole extending throughthe same from front torear. This hole is bounded at the sides by two flat, parallel walls orfaces3. The faces at the top and bottom of the hole may [be of anyshape, as long as they provide clearance for the screw by which thebracket is to be secured; these faces, indicated at 4, being shown asbeing fiat and parallel to each other.

Cooperating with the bracket is a metal strap, 5, long enough to belooped around the member I and have its ends carried through the hole inthe bracket. Grooves 6 are cut in the top and bottom walls bounding thehole in the bracket,

beside the side faces 3. The strap is wide enough to extend into thesegrooves, thereby causing Wide shallow grooves, or depressions laterallyon the side of the bracket which issel'ected for the front side.

After thestrap has been passed around the member land the ends broughtforward through the hole in the bracket; as shown in Fig. 3, a

thread-cutting screw 8" is partially entered in the l hole from thefront, between the strap'ends. The vertical corners at the ends of thehole are rounded off, as indicated at 9-, to'facilitate' this operation. The external diameter'of the screw is less, than the distancebetween the top and bottom faces but greater than the distance betweenthe strap ends w-hen the latter lie flat against the side faces 3. Uponturning the screw, it cuts a thread in each strap and and graduallydraws the strap tight about the member I, by reason of the fact that thetwo strap ends are drawn forwardly by the screw as long as there is anyslack to be takenup. Because of the presence of the shallow, grooves ordepressions I in the front face of thebracket, their depth being alittle greater 1 than the thickness of the strap, the head of the screwdoes not bind on the protruding strap endsj but simply serves as a guidethat permits the'strap ends to creep laterally and rearwardly until thecondition illustrated in Fig, 4 results.

It will thus be seen that by means of our invention, any member,provided with a hole of the proper size and shape, may be fixed to anysecond member without employing anything more than a simple strap and athread-cutting screw, provided that a strap can be looped around thesecond member or a part thereof. 1

While we have illustrated and described with particularity onl a singlepreferred form of our invention, we do not desire to be limited to theexact structural details thus illustrated and described; butintend tocover all forms and'ar-' same, a metal strap formed into an open loopand having its spaced ends extending through said hole, and a screw ofthe'thread-forming type inserted in said hole between said strap endsand I I fashion cooperating screw threads on the latter...

I 2. A device of the character described, comprising a member having ahole through the same, a metal strap formed into an open loop and havingits spaced ends extending through said hole, a headed screw of thethread-forming typeine serted in said hole between said strap ends andfashion cooperating screw threads on' the latter,

and the face of said member at which the strap ends emerge beingrecessed to a depth somewhat greater than the thiclmess of the strap onoppo- I site sides of the hole.

3. A device of the character described comprising a member vhaving ahole extending through the same and provided with opposed parallelsurfaces extending lengthwise of'the hole at the sides of the latter, ametal strap formed tact with said surfaces strap ends. I

4. A device of the character: described, I prising a member having ahole extending 2,375,607 -11; Tran;

wardly flaring surfaces at the end where the strap .ends emerge, and ascrew of the thread-forming type inserted in said hole between the strapends and iashion screw threads on the latter.'

6. A device of the character described; comprising a member having ahole extending therethrough and provided with opposed, parallel flatsides, a strap formed'into an open loop having its spaced ends extendingthrough said hole in contact with said sides, the face-of said member atwhich the strap ends emerge being recessed on opposite sides, of the holto a depth somewhat greater than the thickness of the strap, said fiatthrough the same and provided with opposed flat sides, a metal strapformed into an ,open'loop'and" I; l having, its spaced ends extendingthrough said hole in contact with said sides, and ascrew of thethread-forming type somewhat larger indiarneter than the distancebetween those portions of the strap ends in contact with said sidesinserted in said hole between the strap ends. 5; A. device of thecharacter described, comprising. a member having a hole-extendingtherethrough and provided with opposed parallel, flat faces at thesides, a metal strap formed into an open loop having its spaced endsextending through said hole in contactwith said flat surfaces, said flatsurfaces terminating in outside's terminating in outwardly curvedsurfaces that merge into the bottoms of the recesses, and a headedscrewof the thread-forming type inserted in said hole between the strap endsand fashion screw threads in the latter.

7. A device of the character described, comprising 'a' member having ahole through the same, two spaced metal strap ends extending intosaidhole, and a screw of the thread-forming type inserted in said holebetween the strap ends and fashion cooperatingscrew threads on thelatter.

8. In combination, a member having a hole therein, .two spaced strapends extending into said hole; and a screw fitting between'the strapends,.

within said hole, in screwthreaded relation thereto, andclamping thesame against saidmember at opposite sides of the hole.

,. 1 THOMASVAN TU'YL,

CHARLES'B.

